Novak Djokovic

Eyes full of tears, body trembling, knees on the clay of Phillip Chatrier stadium and his hands pointing to the sky – the image of Novak Djokovic winning the elusive Olympic gold at last was one of the greatest images in the sporting world in 2024, if not the greatest.

„Everything I felt in that moment when I won surpassed everything I thought or hoped that it would“, said Djokovic on the 4th of August,“It definitely stands out as the biggest sporting achievement I have had“.

Exactly two months beforehand, on the 4th of June, things seemed more than bleak as Djokovic withdrew before the French Open quarterfinals following a knee injury he sustained in his fourth round win over Francisco Cerundolo. The following day he underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus with the Olympic Games in sight.

Defying logic, Djokovic recovered in time for Wimbledon and even made the finals. Although he was dominated by Alcaraz, he got in much needed match play going into, what was for him, the most important tournament of the year.

„I see the fire in his eyes, the unreal focus in practices, he is as motivated as ever, so expect – everything“, said Viktor Troicki, captain of Serbia’s Davis Cup team and Djokovic’s childhood friend, ahead of his clash with Rafael Nadal in the second round of the Olympics.

Novak didn’t lose a set in Paris beating Ebden, Nadal, Koepfer, Tsitsipas, Musetti and Alcaraz – finally capturing the Olympics single gold on his fifth attempt. Djokovic became only the fifth player to win the Golden Slam, winning all four major titles and the Olympic singles gold. He joined Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams.

Already holding almost every meaningful record in tennis, Djokovic admittedly struggled to find motivation as he played just six tournaments outside of the Slams and the Olympics, compiling a 37-9 score and finishing without an ATP title for the first time since 2005, although he did have runner-up showings at Wimbledon and in Shanghai, where he chose to end his season, skipping the indoor tournaments altogether.

Bruised from a painful Davis Cup loss in 2023, Djokovic struggled at the Australian Open throughout the fortnite before losing comfortably to Sinner in the semifinals. The knee injury shadowed over Roland Garros and Wimbledon, while his US Open campaign came too soon after an emotionally and mentally draining Olympics.

„I spent a lot of energy winning the gold, and I did arrive in New York just not feeling fresh mentally and physically. But because it's the US Open, I gave it a shot“, said Djokovic.

Greatest Win: Carlos Alcaraz won both Roland Garros and Wimbledon, he was on fire at the Olympics and a heavy favorite ahead of the finals. The Spaniard played another extraordinary match, but Djokovic had a meeting with destiny. Playing aggressive, high-intensity tennis throughout the match and coming up big in the clutch moments, Novak won 7-6(3) 7-6(2).

What If Moment: Despite his subpar clay court season, Djokovic looked strong at the French Open before the knee injury, which affected his Wimbledon campaign too.

Look Ahead: On the penultimate day of the season, the earthquake hit – Andy Murray will coach Novak Djokovic in the offseason and at the Australian Open. A couple of weeks ago, Djokovic said: „Tennis is still my focus! I am going at full throttle in the off-season, we are going for another ride“. The goal being – adding a 25th Grand Slam title to his CV.